A Taste of Baja Comes to Playa in September

Plates full at Playa

By Lesley Balla

Chef John Sedlar has invited three prominent Baja chefs - you know it's the hot new dining destination right now - to create special menu items throughout the month of September at Playa. Dishes will be priced a la carte, and Julian Cox will have special cocktails to pair with them. Things kick off with Sabina Banderas, owner of La Guerrerense, a longtime favorite seafood street stand known for seafood cocktails, raw clams and oysters (here's a taste from the Gastronomy blog). Her sea urchin tostada was one of the best things we tasted at last year's LA Street Food Fest, maybe the best thing we tasted all of last year. Look for her dishes from September 16-18.

From September 23-25, specialties from Ensenada's Benito Molina make an appearance. Molina's food "reflects the freedom, spirit and tranquility of Ensenada," and more cutting-edge than rustic, and his restaurant Manzanilla is known as a meeting place for Baja's food and wine industry. The chefs from Tijuana's Tacos Kokopelli street stand, who wowed the judges at this year's LA Street Food Fest, come through from September 30-October 2, with dishes like halibut ceviche with sour cactus fruit, and queso panela with tomatillo sauce and chapulines (grasshoppers). Make reservations now - it's easier than crossing the border (7360 Beverly Blvd.; 323-933-5300).